My mission is clear. I want to help you Become a More Effective Leader and Build a More Successful Business.

I am always focused on providing practical strategies, tools and tips … not a lot of jargon or BS … to help you advance your personal and professional growth.

So that you don’t miss any of the articles, podcasts and videos I publish, sign up now so that you’ll receive everything directly into your inbox.

I have enjoyed a very diverse career

In many ways, I have been fortunate to enjoy a remarkably diverse career.

I have taken risks – my wife will attest to that – and indulged in a variety of roles where I could apply my experience in uniquely valuable ways.

It’s one of the reasons I have a wide-ranging perspective … from deep in the trenches … across the often bewildering breadth of issues that business leaders must face … whether they like it or not … to build a successful business.

My career is uniquely diverse

Very few executives have had such a diverse career. In roughly chronological order, I have been …

A commercial banker for two major money center banks,

Assistant to the President of a NYSE soft goods manufacturer and importer,

EVP/CFO for a high growth, consumer products company that grew from $5 million to over $125 million in a little more than 5 years,

Founder of a merchant bank,

Managing General Partner of a $35MM venture capital fund,

CFO & COO of a national change management consulting firm,

Consulting Practice Leader for the 12th largest U.S. consulting and accounting firm,

I have been a CEO and a key member of several executive leadership teams.

I have been a member of 8 different boards of directors/advisors of middle market companies. You can also review a more detailed resume to learn more about my background.

Look around the Conference Table

One way to think of my diverse background and the unique perspective I have learned it to consider that I have occupied most of￼ the seats around the conference table as …

an investor

a lender

a borrower

partner

principal

advisor

director

officer

intermediary

owner, and

employee.

What am I doing now?

During my professional services career that started over 30 years ago, I have provided clear, unbiased and direct counsel to CEO’s successfully building their companies.

Currently, I am an executive leadership coach in the San Francisco Bay area for individuals as well as peer groups of C-Level Executives. You can learn more about my leadership development activities here.

I am also a professional author.

For over 5 years, I have published more than 125 newspaper columns under the title of Building a Business for the North Bay Business Journal, which until late 2012, was an affiliate of the New York Times. You will see that there are 550+ additional articles in our Library on topics bearing on leadership and building a business.

I have also published three e-books about leadership as well as business finance.

Make sure that you don’t miss any of the articles, podcasts and videos I publish by subscribing via RSS or e-mail.

I am also a public speaker and have spoken extensively to business groups on the subjects of leadership, capital strategy and cash flow, ownership transition and other topics related to leadership and business building.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope we’ll have a chance to meet somewhere down the road and that you will feel free to reach out to me directly if I can help you as you grow as a leader and build a successful business.

Connect with Me

Testimonials

Lary is one of the brightest and most energetic professionals with whom I have ever worked. His skills in dealing with privately held firms and the aggressive and creative solutions made him a valuable asset to any business. ~ F. Bart Smith, President (retired)

Lary began advising our company when we were going through some difficult challenges, and now, two years later, we are in a completely different and significantly better place. His advice was specific, direct, and not always what we wanted to hear, and that was invaluable. Lary has been quick to cut through to the heart of an issue. His coaching, prodding, and tough questioning helped us to make changes that truly and measurably have helped both our top and bottom lines. ~ Paul Levitan, CEO

In my former position as a tax partner at KPMG, LLP, I worked closely with Lary on the tax aspects of the plethora of business issues that arise in the life cycle of a start up company. It was unusual to see a senior finance person demonstrate a seasoned business acumen in identifying issues and opportunities, grasping the technical issues, resolving obstacles and implementing change. ~ Jeffrey Bergmann, V.P. Worldwide Tax

We have a great management team that has built a very successful company. At an important crossroads, we needed more expertise on an expanded list of financial issues than we could provide ourselves. Lary brought that expertise, providing the depth of knowledge and experience that helped us develop and implement a practical solution.
~ Gary Imm, CEO (retired)

Lary has a remarkable ability to provide a clear and thoughtful analysis of the business drivers and potential outcomes facing private companies at each stage of development. His insight has provided a powerful framework for decision-making in many challenging situations. ~ Noah J. Rosenkrantz, CEO

Lary was an important component in helping us raise our first (over-subscibed) fund at Harbour Group. His doggedness, professionalism, and friendly demeanor helped open doors for what, at the time, was an untested and reasonably new concept. He was a pleasure to work with and remains a friend to this day.
~ Ralph Lobdell, Chairman, Tripos, Inc.

Not only do you get honesty and integrity from Lary but you also get creativity, maturity and deep business acumen. Lary is the diamond in the rough for middle market companies in need of corporate advisory services and transaction services. ~ Kelly O. Kay, Partner, Center for Corporate Innovation

Lary has been a tremendous asset to our company. His experience and knowledge provides our young company with the type of financial and business guidance needed to facilitate our continued growth. In addition to Lary's efforts in raising capital for our company, he has assisted Multimedia Live in both extensive business planning, as well as continual ongoing monthly financial and strategy analysis of our business. I have found this to be an invaluable service. ~ Ken Burke, CEO, Multimedia Live, Inc.

I've known and worked with Lary for more than 15 years as a business partner, consulting colleague and adviser and have found that Lary's financial skills and creativity result in high quality results for his clients. I am certain that Lary's strong work ethic, client focus and successful track record bode well for future clients just as they have formed the foundation of a long-term and highly valued relationship for me. ~ Kevin J. Sharps, Director, Financial Services Consulting practice

Lary brings to the table a wealth of real world wisdom and experience that is grounded in an impressive array of C-level and other executive leadership and operational management roles. Over the years I have found Lary's advise and counsel to be invaluable, I think in part because of his dedication and commitment to being of true value to his clients and colleagues. Lary has a well-honed ability to ask the right (and often difficult!) questions, to shed light on the most challenging aspects of your business, to share best practices and to guide you to valuable solutions to consider. I recommend Lary without hesitation. If you are a CEO or senior level executive, working with Lary will no doubt prove to be one of the smartest decisions you will make during your career.~ David Newlin, Managing Partner

Ready to mix it up a little?

If you’re a fan of the Mystery-Thriller-Suspense genre, you can enjoy a little diversion and dive into some of the great reads you’ll find here. I intend to stimulate your discovery of the good, the bad and the only genre where a ranch breakfast is a steel metal jacket dipped in cordite. Have fun!

Connect with me

About Me

I am a leadership coach and a professional author and speaker, facilitating leadership groups among CEOs and senior business leaders in the SF Bay area.

I am the author or more than 125+ newspaper columns published by the SF Bay affiliate of the NY Times among the 500+ articles here. I have also written 3 ebooks about Leadership & Business Finance.

I have been married forever to a beautiful woman and have one spectacular daughter who has dedicated her life to helping children with life-threatening illnesses.
Read more ….

Recent Posts

Why Learn It All the Hard Way?

Ready to mix it up a little?

If you're a fan of the Mystery-Thriller-Suspense genre, you can enjoy a little diversion and dive into some of the great reads you'll find here. I intend to stimulate your discovery of the good, the bad and the only genre where a ranch breakfast is a steel metal jacket dipped in cordite. Have fun!